Chapter 78

Lin Sen was invited to a family dinner again. However, this time, it was clearly different from Tapias' family dinner, as the person who extended the invitation was Xiao Sans, the chairman of Malaga. Moreover, calling it a family dinner was not entirely accurate, as there were only three people dining: Xiao Sans, Lin Sen, and an elderly man—Lorenzo Sans, the former president of Real Madrid.

One thing was certain: if Xiao Sans were not the chairman of Malaga, Lin Sen would have politely declined the invitation. The reason was simple: the long table in front of him seemed to stretch to the ends of the earth, and the food, though described as abundant, was actually just a small amount of food on exaggeratedly large plates. Although each dish was exquisitely prepared and tempting, it seemed more designed to whet one's appetite rather than to fill one's stomach. This was not a meal; it was pure torture.

The reason Xiao Sans invited Lin Sen was very simple: to congratulate Malaga on their victory over Real Madrid in the previous match. However, when Lin Sen saw Old Sans, he began to doubt Xiao Sans' reason. While it was true that Xiao Sans now controlled Malaga, everyone knew that the initial buyer of Malaga was not Xiao Sans, but the elderly man sitting at the head of the table.

When people talked about Old Sans, the first thing that came to mind was that he was the former president of Real Madrid, and during his tenure, Real Madrid won three Champions League titles in five years. In theory, such achievements should have made Old Sans a legendary president of Real Madrid. However, in reality, many people, including many Real Madrid fans, did not hold him in high regard. They believed he had both merits and faults, but the faults outweighed the merits. The most significant fault was that his competition with Barcelona led to Real Madrid's heavy debt. Additionally, there were rumors that he had used public funds for gambling...

In short, he was a controversial president.

Throughout the dinner, there was not much conversation, mostly just polite congratulations and the rest was silence. It wasn't until after the dinner, when Old Sans lit a cigar, that he smiled and engaged Lin Sen in more conversation. However, even then, the conversation never strayed far from football. Old Sans spoke about La Liga, European football, and even global football trends, and he had his own opinions on all of them. Lin Sen mostly just listened with a smile, not offering much in the way of personal views or responses.

It wasn't that Lin Sen was unwilling to respond or had nothing to say; it was that their perspectives were fundamentally different. Here, Lin Sen was just a head coach, while Old Sans, though ostensibly no longer involved with Malaga, was known to be the club's behind-the-scenes owner.

"The Real Madrid of today is not the Real Madrid of the past. As long as that lawyer remains in his position, Real Madrid will never stand atop Europe. That despicable man has no right to be the president of Real Madrid. Back in the day... well, let's not talk about it." Perhaps Lin Sen's attentive listening made Old Sans more talkative, and when he spoke about Real Madrid, a hint of unwillingness flashed in his eyes.

The current Real Madrid president, Ramon Calderon, had previously served as an advisor to Florentino Perez, who was the one who ousted Old Sans from the Real Madrid presidency. Old Sans still harbored resentment over that election, where a single "Figo" cost him what he thought was a sure re-election.

If Old Sans had stopped there, Lin Sen might have understood his feelings. However, his next words left a bitter taste in Lin Sen's mouth.

"You're lucky to have encountered the worst Real Madrid. However, Malaga's current playing style is too ugly and needs to be improved. If I were still the president of Real Madrid..."

Old Sans' tone was casual, as if it were just a joke, but when he said it, not only Lin Sen but even Xiao Sans felt that his father was acting strangely. There is no medicine for regret, and "if" is a word better suited for self-reflection. Malaga's victory over Real Madrid could be attributed to luck, but luck is also a part of strength. Without the strength, even the best luck would be useless. As for the "ugly" playing style, was defense ugly? Did Malaga have the right to choose its playing style?

Xiao Sans might have thought his father was just having a "relapse" of his old habits. But Lin Sen knew that Old Sans, who had been trying to make a comeback in football, was thinking about more than just the "glory days" of Real Madrid. The next Real Madrid presidential election was coming up in the summer, and it wouldn't be strange if Old Sans reignited his hopes for the position, especially given Calderon's current troubles.

Not only that, but Lin Sen also knew that Old Sans had no chance in the next Real Madrid presidential election because another big figure, the former captain of the Galacticos—Florentino Perez—was also running.

So, even if Old Sans was unwilling, his obsession could only remain a mirage.

Because of this, Lin Sen's attention was not on Old Sans but on Xiao Sans.

After confirming that Xiao Sans had not looked at him once throughout the dinner, Lin Sen took a deep breath, his face calm, and said something that, if said six months later, would have been a sharp irony for Old Sans.

"I believe that. Real Madrid will definitely have a better president next year."

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When leaving, Xiao Sans escorted Lin Sen to the door. On the way, Xiao Sans did not offer any explanation for his father's words. Clearly, in his mind, if not for Lin Sen's impressive start at Malaga, Lin Sen might never have set foot here. Even so, Xiao Sans did not think he needed to explain his father's words.

So, the walk was just casual conversation, like friends, but not quite. Lin Sen could clearly feel that the tone of the chairman, who was only a few years older than him, was more like a consolation than a conversation. Yes, it was not an equal relationship but a hierarchical one. This tone might not have been intentional on Xiao Sans' part, but it was there, just as their working relationship was.

Lin Sen did not necessarily need an explanation for Old Sans' words; he wasn't that sensitive. However, he did hope for some kind of attitude, even just a little opinion, to ease the thorn in his heart. But even as Lin Sen got into his car and left, Xiao Sans did not mention a single word more.

Looking at the scenery passing by, Lin Sen suddenly smiled.

Wanderers always yearn for a home, and those with a home always yearn for freedom. Lin Sen didn't feel much about the latter, but he deeply understood the former. If he could, Lin Sen would also hope to be like Ferguson, but being a mentor is not so easy. Not only is it not something one person can decide, but Lin Sen's nature was not to compromise. After his experience at Atletico Madrid, Lin Sen no longer easily placed his hopes on others. Fairness is always relative; being fair to oneself might mean being unfair to others. At Atletico, Lin Sen never said he wanted to stay, even though he very much hoped to, but in the end, he had to leave because Atletico considered more than just his personal fairness.

So, what about Malaga?

Lin Sen still dared not speak of permanence, which was why he insisted on a 1+1 contract with Malaga.

Because Lin Sen could not be sure that Malaga would not be another Atletico. This time, he did not want to be completely passive and let others choose or abandon him. So, when signing the contract, he gave himself a choice, and the same choice to Malaga. Lin Sen was confident in his performance at Malaga. Even if his luck was bad, the players he chose had the ability to ensure they wouldn't struggle to avoid relegation.

So, that choice was mostly for himself.

For Lin Sen, the conditions for peace of mind were simple: a good chairman and a good group of fans. Of course, if it could be in a nice city, that would be even better.

The last condition, Malaga clearly met. As for the chairman and fans, the fans were at least qualified so far, possibly because Malaga had been performing well recently. As for the chairman, at least throughout the summer, Xiao Sans had kept his promise and did not interfere with Lin Sen's transfer work, even when some of Lin Sen's signings were quite unconventional. This was particularly satisfying for Lin Sen, though it was partly due to Malaga's limited budget.

In fact, during their first meeting, Xiao Sans had given Lin Sen a good impression. He wasn't overly ambitious, but he had ideas. He wasn't overly shrewd, but he was practical.

Thinking about this, Lin Sen suddenly remembered a brief conversation with Mourinho a few days ago.

After Malaga's victory over Real Madrid, Lin Sen received a congratulatory text from Mourinho. He was surprised because he didn't even know why Mourinho had his phone number, and they only had a passing acquaintance from a friendly match. However, Lin Sen politely thanked him, thinking that would be the end of it. But just as he replied, he received a call from Mourinho, and they had a brief conversation.

At the time, one of Mourinho's statements left a deep impression on Lin Sen. He said that Moratti was the best chairman he had ever seen because he was the most like a fan.

Lin Sen did not think that Mourinho's "best" was comprehensive. A chairman who is too much like a fan is not good for the club, and even less so for the head coach. Lin Sen also knew that, without error, two years later, Mourinho, standing atop Europe, did not choose to stay at Inter Milan when Real Madrid invited him. However, he agreed with the latter part.

A head coach, in essence, is an employee who wants a good boss. There are many standards for a good boss, but one truth stands out: a man will die for one who understands him.

Was Xiao Sans such a person? At least for now, Lin Sen did not think so.

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PS: I really want to catch up with the updates, but my hands are just not up to the task. What can I do? Sigh.

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